Design

Setting

A CCU in Kansas City, Missouri, USA.

Patients

1013 patients admitted to the CCU over a 12 month period. Patients admitted for work up before transplantation were excluded.
Follow up was 98% (23 patients were excluded after randomisation because they were admitted for <1 day).

Intervention

484 patients were allocated to intercessory prayer. A total of 75 intercessors were recruited from the community; all intercessors
had to agree with the following statements: “I believe in God. I believe that He is personal and is concerned with individual
lives. I further believe that He is responsive to prayers for healing made on behalf of the sick.” For each patient, a team
of 5 intercessors, who received no information other than the first name of the patient, was asked to pray daily for the next
28 days for “a …